Hamtaro: The Dragon Rider
by Tennisgurl14
Summary: When Hamtaro's dragon's life is in danger from the evil humans planning to destroy their beloved tree-home, Hamtaro must travel across the world in search of the dragon sanctuary, the Valley of Hope while saving the world from evil all the while.
1. Chapter 1

AN: And I am back! I've been having a major problem with my rough drafts for _The Void War_ lately, so I asked my friend for advice and she said that I should just start a new story and maybe get new ideas for my story. She's kind of my co-editor in a way, so I owe it to her big time! 've read the book _Dragon Rider_ by Cornelia Funke a million times, and it's been one of my favorite novels! So I said, why not? Might as well do a crossover with the book and Hamtaro. And viola! You get this right here!

Hamtaro and his friends are hamsters in this story, and yes, they live in an alternate world where they co-exist with dragons and have magical powers and that sort of thing.

**Disclaimer: I do not own Hamtaro or the Dragon Rider. Hamtaro belongs to his creator (s) and Dragon Rider rightfully belongs to Cornelia Funke. You could all pretty much guess what I would do if I owned Hamtaro...or Dragon Rider....Also, I really don't think that anyone in the Hamtaro or Dragon Rider section has done this, but if any of you think that this seems familiar, just PM me and I'll be sure to immediately delete. But I'm pretty much sure that this is no way at all similar to anything in either section and _just_ for the record, I just came up with this _randomly_ so she and I weren't copying anything or anyone AT ALL!!**

Summary: When the life of Hamtaro's dragon, Dracoheart, is in danger from the evil humans, Hamtaro must travel across the world in search of the legendary dragon sanctuary, the Rim of Heaven. Tagging along with him are the Tiger (and very annoying) twins, Stan and Sandy. Along the way they meet new friends and possibly, romance, but they find out in the end that they're not the only ones in search of the Rim of Heaven. An evil being, created out of pure gold and viciousness, is after them in order to destroy the last of the dragons...and hamsters! Add a lot of adventure, a dash of weird encounters, and a pinch of romance, you get...this! (I suck at summaries)

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Prologue: Bad news

All was still in the valley of the Draco-hams. Mist had drifted in from the sea nearby and was clinging to the mountains. Birds twittered uncertainly in the foggy damp, finding no place to go to return to their nests. The dark, gray clouds hid the sun, blocking all light and allowing the darkness to consume the land.

A small, gray rat about the size of a humans thumb withmuzzled whiskers cam scuttling down the slope, falling head over heels tumbling down the moss-covered rocks. It took her a while before she was able to pick herself up again. The only reason why it took her three long minutes was because she kept muttering to herself over and over again incomprehensible.

"I told them! I told them! But did they listen to me? Ooohhh, no! Of course, not! No one ever listens to me!"Then she raised her pointy noise, listened and headed towards a group of green bushes at the foot of an enormous oak tree. "I knew before winter! Oh, yes, I knew before winter alright, I could smell it coming, but they wouldn't believe me, no, not them! They could smell too those...but they feel safe here! Safe! Huh! They're no safer than a doormouse.

It was so dark under the bushes you could hardly see anything at all. Even if you squinted. Though the rat knew that the gigantic oak tree was there. No human was able to see it because of the fog creeping around its every core and center.

She glanced warily around again, and then disappeared into the crevice in the oak tree. There was a huge tavern inside. If you looked up, you would see the little tiny cliffs and ledges surrounding around the tree; and if you looked on these ledges and cliffs you would see small hamsters with different colored fur walking this way and that carrying bundles of wood, or clothing, or berries. Then, if you were to walk at the very ledge of the tavern and looked down you would probably hold back a gasp of shock when you see small dragons **(AN: They're about the size of a baby dragon like in the 1st Harry Potter movie, but remember to hamsters, they're still huge all the same!) **flying all over the place with similar ledges and cliffs to that as the hamsters above.

These were none other than the Draco-hams. Hamsters that live in co-existence with the dragons as their friends, but apart from the dangerous beings out in the world like humans and the dangerous and most vicious...cats. No one has ever searched for the sacred fortress of their homeland, and no one ever has except for outside messengers and fellow friendly adventurers.

The rat came scurrying in, but sadly she didn't get far. Someone grabbed her tail and lifted her up in the air as she tried her hardest to kick and scrath whoever was daring enough to get her.

"Hi, Rat! What are you, like, doing here?"

The rat snapped at the furry fingers that were holding her tight, but all she caught was a mouthful of ham-girl hair which she spat out scornfully.

"Sandy!" She hissed. "Let go of me this instant, you brainless sunflower-muncher! I don't have time for your silly ribon tricks!"

"You, like, don't have time?" Sandy placed Rat on the flat of her furry paws. She was still a young hamster, easily big enough to fit in a human's palm, with sandy-orange colored fur, brown tiger stripes trailing along the top of her head to her back, a red ribbon tied to the end of her tail. She was said to be out of the most peculiar sort of hamster out of their group because her green eyes sparkled like that of a cats so she was most definately respected among her fellow ham-mates. "How come, Rat? What's the big hurry? Need a dragon to protect you from hungry cats or what?"

"This has nothing to do with cats!" hissed Rat angrily. She didn't care for young hamsters herself, although all the dragons loved them and their furry faces. When the dragons couldn't sleep they would listen to the strange little songs the hamsters sang, and when they felt sad no one could cheer them up as well as those kind-hearted hamster layabouts.

"I've got bad news, if you want to know. Extremely bad news," grumbled Rat. "But I"m not telling anyone except Hamtaro and Dracoheart. Certainly not you or even your twin brother Stan!"

"Hey! I have every right as my sister does!" Another hamster saddled up next to Sandy. He was definately the twin of Sandy, except his furry little face was a bit more male-like and he didn't have a ribbon at the end of his tail. Though his tiger stripes was the same and so were his fierce emerald eyes. Side by side the two twins looked like miniature tigers and ironically enough that was their nickname. The Tiger Twins.

Sandy glared at her brother. "Like, not now, Stan!" Then she turned back to the small rat that was still in her small paws. "Bad news? What sort of bad news?" Beside her Stan looked confusedly from Rat to his sister.

"Put--me--down!" snarled Rat.

"If you say so." Sandy sighed and let Rat hop down to the stony floor of the cave. "But I wouldn't wake Hamtaro or Dracoheart just yet. The two of them are still asleep."

"Then I'm waking both of them up!" spat the rat, making her way farther into the tavern, right to the ledge. She hopped down into the small, wooden elevator shaft used by the hamsters to get up and down in the tree, and went down. Stan and Sandy followed her quickly by using a set of staircases. The very bottom of the underground cavern was lit with blue fire, keeping the damp away from the heart of the tree. Beside its licking blue flames the dragon and hamster lay asleep, curled up with the dragon's head on its paws and the hamster's head snuggled against in the dragon's belly. Both were coiled around the fire. The flames brought a glow to the dragon's silver scales and the hamster's pure half-orange and half-white fur coat. Rat scurried up to the sleeping figures, climbing up the hamster's snoozing body and tugged on his ear.

"Hamtaro!" she shouted. "Hamtaro! Dracoheart! Wake up! They're coming!"

Sleepily, the hamster opened his eyes. "Oh, it's you, is it, rat?" he murmured in a rather hoarse voice. "Has the sun set already, then? Should I wake Dracoheart?"

"No and no, but you must get up all the same! You have to wake the tree leaders!" Rat jumped off Hamtaro's head and scuttled up and down in front of him. "I warned you all, I really did--I warned the whole bunch of you, but you wouldn't listen!"

"What's she talking about?" The hamster cast an inquiring glance at Sandy and Stan, who were now sitting by the fire, nibbling their sunflower seeds.

They both shrugged simultaneously. "No idea," Stan said, munching. "She just keeps jabbering on. Well, there's not much room for any information in a brain like hers."

"Oh really!" Rat gasped indignantly. "Honestly, I ask you, I--"

"Take no notice, Rat!" Hamtaro rose, stretched, and shook himself clean of dirt. "He's just in a bad mood 'cause the fog makes his fur all damp for the his 'ladies'." This sent Stan to glare angrily at his fellow companion as his sister snickered endlessly.

Rat threw both twins a venomous glance. "Pull the other one! These Tiger Twins are always bad-tempered. I've been up since sunrise, running my paws off to warn you. And what thanks do I get?" Her gray coat was bristling with anger. "I have to listen to their silly fur-brained fancies!"

"Warn us of what?" Sandy threw the nibbled remnants of her seed at the wall where it smashed in half in a very skilled manner. Out of all the dagger-throwing hamsters in the entire village, Sandy was by far the greatest and most skilled out of them all. Her brother even said so. "Oh, cats! Stop, like, winding us all up like this or I'll, like, tie a knot in your tail!"

"Quiet, Sandy!" Hamtaro angrily kicked his foot on the dust covered floor sending some into the fire which sent blue sparks into Sandy's and Stan's fur, where they went out like tiny shooting stars.

"All right, all right!" she muttered. "But the way that rat, like, carries on is enough to drive me insane!"

"Oh, really? Then just you listen to me!" Rat drew herself up to her full height, planted her paws on her hips, and bared her teeth. "_Humans_ are coming!" she squeaked, so shrilly that it sent the trio to cover their sensitive ears. "Human beings are coming! And you know what that means, you barkdust burrowing, sunflower-brain, fur-ball hamsters? Humans are coming HERE!"

Suddenly it was silent.

The three hamsters looked at each other as if they had seen a cat themselves. But Rat was still trembling with rage. Her whiskers were all aquiver, and her tail twitched back and forth on the underground floor.

Hamtaro was the first to move.

"Humans?" he asked, bending himself to hold out his paw towards Rat. Looking offended, she scrambled onto it. Hamtaro raised her to his eye level. "Are you sure?" he asked.

"Perfectly sure," replied the rat.

Hamtaro bowed his head. Stan folded his arms across his chest, a mixture of different faces. "What _did_ we expect? It was bound to happen sooner or later, someday," he said quietly. "They're all over the place these days. I think there's more of them all the time in the forest."

Sandy was looking stunned. Suddenly she jumped up and spat into the fire. "But that's, like, impossible!" she cried. "There's, like, nothing here they'd want, like, nothing at all!"

"That's what you think!" The rat bent over so far that she almost fell out of Hamtaro's paw. "Don't talk such nonsence you idiotic ham-girl! You've mingled with humans before, right? There's nothing they don't fancy, nothing they don't want. Forgotten that already have you?"

She looked at Rat scornfully but held up her paws in front of her to defend herself. "Ok! Ok! You're right. We're all right. They're greedy. They want everything for themselves. At least, like, only the _evil_ humans anyway."

"They do indeed." The rat nodded. "And I tell you, they're coming here."

The dragon-fire flared up, and then the flames burned low until the shadows swallowed them. Only one thing could extinguish Hamtaro's dragon friend, Dracoheart's fiery breath so fast. It was sorrow. The dragon was awake now, with a look of pure sadness in its golden eyes, but he blew gently on the dusty ground, and the flames flickered up once more. Hamtaro exchanged a knowing glance with his dragon friend, amber eyes looking sad as the golden ones on the dragon.

"This is bad news indeed, Rat," said Hamtaro at last. He led Rat up on his shoulder, and then went slowly to the shaft with Dracoheart right behind him. "Come on, Sandy, Stan. We have to wake the clan."

The Tiger Twins looked at him and then each other, sharing similar groans of anguish. "It's bad enough that we were allotted as the 'Tiger Twins', now how are they going to handle this?" Stan asked his sister, but Sandy only shrugged as they followed Hamtaro and Dracoheart up into the tavern.

Mist still clung to the walls.

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AN: The prologue is done! Sadly, Hamtaro's dragon, Dracoheart doesn't talk and Hamtaro can't hear his thoughts, but they have one in the same soul (you'll see in the end) Bummer. Don't worry, I think updates for this story will be posted up at least every weekend. I've been really preparing my retreat and I haven't had any free time except for today. So hopefully, with enough reviews, I'll be able to complete this fic withing the next month or so.

Please review! ^^


	2. Chapter 2

AN: I have nothing to say for this one except I do not own Hamtaro or Dragon Rider they belong to their creators and author. I'm just a fan.

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Chapter 1: A Wet Meeting

Elder Ham, the oldest ham in the village, had seen more than his memory could hold. His beard had grown from a rusty gray to a creamish white color and his eyes were dreary with old age (as well as sleep) while he carried his most trusted wooden cane around to support his slumbering asset. Behind him, stood a tall dragon whose scales no longer glowed from old age, but could still breathe fire. Whenever young hams were at a loss of their problems they would come to Elder Ham to ask his advice.

Once all the other hams and their dragons had assembled in the vast tavern in the center of the tree, Hamtaro woke him. But it was difficult for him to wake up the old hamster as he was immune to waking up from his deep sleeps.

The sun had set. A black and starless night sky lay over the valley, and it was still raining.

When the old ham emerged from his hut he looked gloomily up in the entrance of their tree home and the gloomy sky. His bones ached from the damp, and the cold weather made his joints stiff. The others respectfully made way for him. Elder Ham looked around. None of the dragons or hams were missing, as this seemed to be much to big of a meeting. The old ham moved through the wet grass, his dragon mimicking him, with heavy steps, droopy ears, and dragging tail, toward a rock that rose in the middle of the tree. Breathing hard, he climbed up on it and looked around. The others gazed up at him like frightened children. Some hamsters and even dragons were still very young and knew nothing but this tavern; others had come with Elder Ham himself from far, far away and remembered that the world had not always belonged to humankind. They all smelled misfortune, and they hoped he would deal with it. But Elder Ham was old and tired now.

"Come up here, Rat," he said in a hoarse voice. "Tell us what you saw and heard."

The rat scampered nimbly up the rock, climbed up on Elder Ham's dragon's back (whose name was WhiteBeard) and crouched on his head. It was so quiet in the huge tavern that you could hear a pin drop far away. The rustle of foxes could be heard outside. Rat cleared her throat. "Humans are coming!" she cried, repeating the words that she had said to Hamtaro. "They have woken up their machines and fed them and sent them on their way. They're already eating a path through the mountains only a month's journey from here. The fairies have told me they'll hold them at bay for a while, but they'll get here sometime or other-because it's this forest-valley of yours they're after."

A groan ran through the ranks of hamsters as their dragon friends figeted this way and that, understanding that trouble was coming. They raised their heads and pressed closer around the rock where Elder Ham and WhiteBeard stood.

Hamtaro, Stan, Sandy and Dracoheart were standing a little ways away, watching with anticipation at the horrified remarks from their fellow friends. Sandy couldn't help but mutter, "Great, Rat. You just had to state the facts, like, right away." This recived a slight nudge from her brother, looking at her with disapprovement.

"What does that mean?" one of the hamsters called out. "Why would they want to come here? Surely they have everything they could ever have where they are!"

"Humans never have all they want," replied Rat with a look of distain.

"Then, why don't we hide until they go away again?" suggested another. Hope was lingering in his eyes. "The way that we've always done when one of them loses his way and turns up here! They're so blind they only see what they expect to see. We're all so small, it'll be a cinch for us to camoflauge in with the trees around us!" Some of the fellow hamsters looked at each other and nodded their heads, liking his idea.

But Rat still shook her head.

"Look here!" she shrilled. "If I've told you once, I've told you a million times that those humans are making plans. Plans to destroy this entire forest in sight! Soon, not even a single Spirit will be able to hear you calling for their help. They'll be hidden far within their shells that they will never wake again!" She looked around the entire area of hamsters. "You hide from human beings, but you aren't interested in what they're up to since you're all small. Some of you, however, rely on the rats to come to and froe from their areas and tell you what's going on." She gave a look to Hamtaro. "We go into their houses; we eavesdrop on them. We know what they're planning for this valley and the trees."

There was a pause. "Here she, like, goes again. Always pausing for dramatic effect." Stan noted to Hamtaro, but the boy-hamster just ignored him. He was too caught up in the information Rat was telling them.

"What are they planning then, Rat?" Elder Ham asked wearily. "Tell us, then. Come on."

Rat fiddled around with her whiskers nervously before replying, "They-they're going to flood the forest." Her voice faultered for a moment. "Soon there'll be nothing here but water. This humongous tree will be flooded, and none of them...none of them will be left. The treetops won't even show above the water line."

The hamsters as well as the dragons stared at her, shocked.

"But...but that's impossible!" one of the hamsters exclaimed at last. "No one can do such a thing like that. Not even us, and we outnumber them in population with our dragons!"

"Impossible?" Rat gave a sarcastic laugh. "You don't get it at all. You tell them, Sandy, Stan. Tell them what human beings are like. After all, you two were once captured by them yourselves weren't you? Ha! Maybe they'll believe the two of you!"

Everyone had eyes on the two Tiger twins. Sandy and Stan looked at Rat furiously, whiskers twitching as though an electric shock ran through their little bodies. Finally, with a defeated sigh, Stan spoke up, his sister clutching at his paw for support. "Rat's right. You all have no idea what it's like to be trapped in a small cage with iron handlings that not even any of your dragons could cut through. They're dangerous. More dangerous than anything you've ever imagined."

Emotion welled inside him and he had to stop to contain all of the rage within him. Sandy thought it was her turn. "Stan and I barely survived, let alone be able to stay together. We were only just lucky to be in the same cage, but the human..." She paused. "The human that had us didn't feed us for _days. _We didn't have any water either. No, instead we had to save up on the seeds given to us and the water..."

There was shock-filled horror in the air around all of them. "You heard them, the lot of you. We have to leave." Elder Ham declared, once weary but now he was standing up straight with so much authority that some of the younger hams cowered back. "We will all leave a few days before they get here. Pack your provisions and make sure you gather everything that's stored in your rooms."

"Where will we go?" the same hamster from earlier asked. "Who will go there to see if it's even safe for us?"

Elder Ham's eyes burned with intent determination. "Leave that to me. I know just the hamsters to travel there. Right now, though, you all need to worry about moving. There's a place much, much better than here. Trust me."

With that he jumped down from the rock with his dragon following behind obediently. The hamsters and dragons dispersed immeidiately with a hope lingering in their hearts. Hamtaro, Stan, Sandy, and Dracoheart were just about to leave to pack themselves, when Elder Ham's hearty voice called out to them.

"Not you four. I have a special mission for you." They turned around to see that he was smiling. The four soon realized that they did not like where he was going with this. "There is a place far from here. A place where hamsters and dragons can live in peace without humans disrupting the harmony. It is in this place where we will all travel to. However, I haven't been there in the longest time, so the four of you must travel there, to see if it still exists and did not fall into the hands of those monsters. Then, I want you to fly back to me and if it is safe, then you have saved us all."

Hamtaro looked at Sandy and Stan. They nodded their heads. If there was anything that had to do with adventure, then the three of them were on it. Dracoheart didn't really have any choice. "We'll do it. We're young and strong and we'll be sure to come back before the month is up."

Elder Ham smiled brightly. "Excellent."

"Just one thing, gramps," said Stan using his nickname for the old hamster. Elder Ham looked curiously at the young boy-hamster. "Where and what is this place exactly?"

"It is called the Valley of Hope."

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When Rat heard of the foursome going out to search for the Valley of Hope, she went beserks. She scampered up on Dracoheart's back to where Hamtaro and the Tiger twins were already sitting, preparing for their long voyage out into the unknown. "Now, remember, my cousin is a very ingenius little map-maker but always requires a fee. If you give him a few pumpkin seeds he should be in a very good mood.

Dracoheart nudged her. Rat scampered down. "Thanks for the advice! And be sure to look for yourself, Rat!" Hamtaro thanked her and Rat looked up at them with a small smile.

"Ah, I think it's going to be awhile before I'm able to rescue you from peskering wild cats." This made Sandy shake her head and glare at her, knowing full well that the rat was talking to her.

Dracoheart spread his wings and sent a gust of dust flying through the air. "Hey, I know, how about we actually get some other hamsters to do the job for us. 'Cause I think this is a really bad idea, ham-dude!" Stan said to Hamtaro, who was in front of him, as Sandy grabbed him from behind.

But his ham-friend just ignored his remark.

And the black forests rose between the dragon and the three hamsters and the tree in which they had been born.

It was still raining.

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AN: It's been so long. I really crave for some more reviews and I kind of need help with my other story. Now that I'm about to be graduating, I'll have all summer long to finish and start my stories! YAY! Happiness!

Ciao! ;)


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